Falls of Clyde – February 2017 Update

The San Francisco Call. (San Francisco [Calif.]), 21 Dec. 1898. Chronicling America: Historic American Newspapers. Lib. of Congress.

Maritime Hawai‘i has been approached by a number of people who are curious about the current status of the National Historic Landmark ship, Falls of Clyde.

Aside from a meeting with a member of Governor David Ige’s staff, the Friends of Falls of Clyde (FFOC) does not seem to be doing very much. The organization appears to have thrown in the towel and is banking on the Scottish effort to step in and save the ship.

According to a post (January 2017) on the FFOC website:

Friends of Falls of Clyde is providing as much information as needed to help their [Save Falls of Clyde International] plan come together. Our role here will be to raise funds to prepare the ship for her long journey to Scotland.

There have been no signs of this effort by the FFOC to raise funds and no outreach to maintain local support and interest in the ship.

Meanwhile, David O’Neill is working on plans for immediate and long-term funding to transport the ship to Scotland and begin the work to preserve and restore the ship. He is talking with various parties regarding securing a berth (possibly an unused dry dock) for her. He is also looking for a TV production company to document her story.

As Maritime Hawai‘i noted in last month’s post, Mr. O’Neill has the support of Ms. Alison Thewliss, MP for Glasgow Central. Ms. Thewliss sent a letter to Governor Ige, asking that his office support Mr. O’Neill’s effort. So far, she has not received any response. Should she not receive a timely answer from Governor Ige, she is prepared to bring the matter to the attention of the British Parliament in the form of a question to the Foreign Secretary, Mr. Boris Johnson.

Governor Ige, please reply to Ms. Thewliss. No make A.

Falls of Clyde at Pier 7, Honolulu Harbor, on 28 January 2017.